Fast and Fabulous Friday - Help From My Friends

Hello Everyone

My Fast & Fabulous Friday got off to a slow start.  8 kids in the house (March Break), no school, no appointments, and no priorities.  Would you hate me if I said I am typing this and I am *still* in my jammies?!?

Embossing towards the Inside

Embossing towards the Outside

At any rate, I wanted to offer you a quick post today to inspire you.  

I myself was inspired by my friend and fellow Stampin' Up! demonstrator (out in beautiful Saskatchewan!),  Shauna Mikuliak.  She posted a quick but beautiful card yesterday and I used it as a starting point to come up with this easy-peasy card.

No tricks.  Nothing complicated.  Just simplicity and beauty. 

The only difference between the 2 is the orientation of the embossing folder.   For the one on the left, the curves of the embossing folder are towards the interior of the card.  And for the right-hand card, the curves of the embossing folder are facing the outer edge of the card.

I'd be interested in your opinion.  Tell me which orientation you prefer?!

In the meantime, I do hope you are enjoying your Friday.  And I hope yours is Fabulous too!

God Bless,   ~Cynthia    <><

Product List
Stamp : Morning Meadow Clear-mount Stamp Set [129678] , Simply Sketched Wood-mount Stamp Set [129669]
Ink : Early Espresso Classic Stampin' Pad [126974] , White Stampin Chalk Marker [132133]
Card Stock : Crumb Cake 8-1/2X11 Card Stock [120953]
Accessory : Silver Baker's Twine [132976]
Big Shot : Delicate Designs Textured Impressions Embossing Folders [127023]

Thankful Thursday - Ribbon With Flowering Flourishes

At the Convention this past July I had the honour and privilege of sharing a room with 3 wonderful ladies whom I met through the Stampin' Up! websites.  We all needed roomies.  We all wanted to cut costs.  So we agreed to share a hotel room and the bill.

Boy did God ever smile down upon me!  I got to share my room with three of the nicest SU! demos you're ever likely to meet.  And I am going to tell you much more about all three of them in a future post.  But right now I wanted to acknowledge one of them.  Cathy Gray was both my room mate and my trusted alarm clock.  She made sure I was awake in plenty of time for my class rehearsals, sessions and my flight home!  Cathy has a terrific blog that I suggest you pop over and visit, and one of the features which she uses is called Thankful Thursday.  How wonderful is that?  We should all spend more time being thankful for what we have.  And we should voice it out loud!.  In honour of Cathy and all the multitude of blessings that I have in my life, I am going to start devoting my Thursday posts to Thankful Thursday!  And on this particular Thursday, I am thankful to and for Cathy.

So here is today's installment.  Each of my customers receives a Thank You card with their order (I write a note on a post-it and put it inside the card - That way my customers receive a card that they can either keep or use themselves).  Becky Jensen CASed a card from someone else, now I am CASing Becky's version of the card.   And it highlights the gorgeous Stitched Satin Ribbon that Stampin' Up! is offering Free all month. 

Of course, I finished the card and wondered if it needed just a bit more oomph so I added some bling.  What do you think?  I like the card with or without the extra bling....but I have to admit I think I like this stepped up version a bit more.

Supply List
Stamps - Flowering Flourishes, Just Believe
Paper - Very Vanilla
Ink - Primrose Petals
Big Shot -  Delicate Designs EF, Large Scallop Edgelit, Bitty Banners Framelits
Tools and Accessories - Primrose Petals Stitched Satin Ribbon, Basic Rhinestones, dimensionals


Remember - if you like receiving cards, either to give or to use for ideas, then place an order with me!  This card (or one one like it) just might be the Thank You card you receive from me!

Have a wonderful Thankful Thursday!  God Bless,   ~Cynthia   <><

Super Easy Ribbon Ornament Card

Okay.  Four kids in school this morning (3 at the High School, Grades 7, 9 and 10 - and my youngest as the last one remaining at the Elementary School - Gr 5).  Met a friend for coffee at Tim Horton's.  And now I needed to make a quick card for today's post.  This card is a lot like yesterday's card - but with a Christmas flair.  And it was so very quick and easy to make!!  Love, love, LOVE the stitched satin ribbon that Stampin' Up! is giving away FREE during September!

Supply List
Stamps - More Merry Messages
Paper - Very Vanilla
Ink - Midnight Muse
Big Shot -  Delicate Designs EF, Holiday Ornaments Framelits
Tools and Accessories - Midnight Muse and Raspberry Ripple Stitched Satin Ribbon, dimensionals



I love how easy it was to make that adorable ornament.  I just used yesterday's method, with a different window shape cut into the top piece of cardstock.  I added the small knot of ribbon at the top of the ornament because it was "missing something".  Then I decided to do something easy to "step up" this card.

First on the agenda - add glitter.  Dazzling Diamonds added to the embossed edges of the card (using a 2-way glue pen) add that little bit of festive flair.  Glitter and Christmas just seem to go together....don't you think?  It might not be super-obvious in the photo, but oh how that Dazzling Diamonds glitter does sparkle and shine!

Next Up:  Add bling.  It is so easy to add bling exactly where you want it using the self-adhesive Basic Rhinestones from Stampin' Up!  And since the package comes with 3 lines of rhinestones that are already attached together, it is easy to add lines across a card, like the ones on this ornament!







So tell me.  What do you think?  Do you prefer the card as the original?  With the glitter?  Or stepped up even further with the bling?




Hope everyone is enjoying their first day of school. 
I'll have 4 excited (and hopefully ecstatic?) kids arriving home in just a few hours.  I can't wait to hear all the first-day-of-school stories!






Happy Stamping and God Bless,     ~Cynthia     <><

Christmas Cheer!

Hello Friends

I have been working away trying to finish the design of my Founder's Circle card (I will have to make 120 of them by the 11th.  I fly out on the 12th!).  But I needed to take a break and decided to create this quick and cute card for you.  Afterall, I need to start showing you all the reasons why you want to get one of the rolls of free Stitched Satin Ribbon that Stampin' Up! is giving away with every order over $50 this month (see my Free Ribbon page in the tabs at the top of my blog for details)!  I only used a smidgeon of the Gumball Green ribbon on this card, but stay tuned this month for lots of other great uses for the ribbon!

This card wasn't CASed from anyone else, but I'm certain there must be many like it on the internet.  Let's face it - the new stamps and images are so very cute and lend themselves to simple, fast but adorable cards!  Here's mine:

Supply List
Stamps - Scentsational Season, Tiny Tags
Paper - Whisper White, Chocolate Chip, Very Vanilla, Gumball Green
Ink - Real Red, Chocolate Chip
Big Shot -  Delicate Designs EF, Holiday Collection Framelits, Apothecary Accents Framelits
Tools and Accessories - Merry Minis Punch Pack, Gumball Green Stitched Satin Ribbon, mini-brad, Jewelry Tag Punch, dimensionals

Don't you just LOVE that Gingerbread man?  He makes me smile and so does this card!  Remember - you still have 2 days to take advantage of the sale I am offering - order this stamp set and the matching framelits as a bundle, and get a free gift from me (not to mention the free roll of ribbon from SU!).  Believe me, this stamp set and coordinating framelits are so cute you will kick yourself if you let the season pass without ordering them.  If you live anywhere in Canada, contact me to get your stamps and framelits bundle (plus free gifts) today!

By the way - the offer of a Free Hallowe'en Painter's Tray Kit for anyone purchasing the starter kit has been extended until September 16th!  I'd love for you to join my team so if you are interested, contact me and we can get your Hallowe'en Painter's Tray Kit on its way to you!

Hope everyone is enjoying their Labour Day weekend.  Keep safe!
God Bless,     ~Cynthia    <><

Convention Swaps

So....apparently it is a tradition that when you come to Convention, you bring swap cards.  These are identical copies of cards you make to "trade" (or "swap") with other demonstrators.    I know women who make 150 and 200 swaps!!  Or they make 50 each of 2 or 3 different designs.  Ack!!  Me?!?  I am a little overwhelmed at the whole idea but I didn't want to "not" join in the fun, so I used one of the cards I designed for my ladies for our June card club as the basis for my Convention swap. 

Supply List
Stamps - Stippled Blossoms
Paper - Whisper White, Garden Green, Marina Mist, Bashful Blue
Ink - Garden Green, Lucky Limeade, Marina Mist, Baja Breeze (Stamped off once so it is pale)
Big Shot -  Top Note die, Fancy Fan EF, Delicate Designs EF, Square Lattice EF (optional)
Tools and Accessories - Sponges, pearls

At club, the ladies had the option of embossing the main stamped image or leaving it "unembossed".  I think there was pretty much a 50/50 split as to who embossed or left it 'flat'.  So I made both versions to bring to Convention and will let the recipients decide which one they prefer.  The embossed version ends up looking more like linen and is a really cool effect but this photo does not do it justice.  In this photo it looks like too much of the fine detail is obscured by the embossing, but in real life the embossed version is very, very pretty.

At least, I hope my swap buddies think so!

I hope to figure out how to download photos onto my laptop (?!?! wish me luck!!) so that I'll be able to share with you some of the very cool swaps I receive in return.  Keep your fingers crossed!  And stay tuned.    :)

Have a wonderful day and God Bless!    ~Cynthia    <><

Four Seasons - Summer Hostess set

Good Morning

If you've seen the new catalogue, you must have drooled over the new hostess sets like I did.  And one of my favourites has to be the Four Seasons stamp set.  I can see me getting a LOT of use out of this one!!

Her is my first take on a nice summertime card with bright colours and an easy design layout.

Supply List
Stamps - Four Seasons
Paper - Whisper White, Melon Mambo, Tempting Turquoise, Daffodil Delight
Ink - Melon Mambo, Tempting Turquoise
Big Shot -  Petals a Plenty Embossing Folder, Delicate Designs Embossing Folder, Large Scallop Edgelit
Tools and Accessories - 2 1/2" circle punch, 2 3/8" scallop punch, 1" Circle Punch, Daffodil Delight 1/4" Stitched Grosgrain Ribbon, dimensionals, 2-way glue pen, Dazzling Diamonds

I love how totally bright and fun this card is.  The inside of the card has the co-ordinating flower (from the Four Seasons Summer stamps) stamped, as well as the butterfly - although I am guessing the butterfly is considered part of the Four Seasons Spring ensemble.    :)

Just something light and summery to say hello on a Sunday morning!  Hope your weekend has been spectacular so far!  
God Bless,         ~Cynthia    <><